How to Apply for War-Related Disability Status in Ukraine

Who can receive the status?

Ukraine's official term is person with a disability as a result of war. It is a veteran status governed principally by Article 7 of the Law of Ukraine on the Status of War Veterans, Guarantees of Their Social Protection.

For people affected by the current war, the law covers specified categories whose disability resulted from an injury, concussion, mutilation or illness connected with qualifying defence activities. These include covered military personnel and other service members who directly participated in the ATO, national-security and defence measures, resistance to Russian aggression in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, or measures necessary for Ukraine's defence, protection of the population and state interests in connection with Russia's military aggression.

Article 7 also contains separate categories for territorial defence volunteers, qualifying volunteers and workers, certain people injured by explosive hazards, and other historical or statutory categories. The evidence required is therefore not identical for every applicant.

Is an ordinary disability decision enough?

No. An established disability is an essential part of the procedure, but the veteran status also requires the legally prescribed connection between that disability and qualifying war, defence, service or other circumstances under Article 7.

The current procedure accepts an extract from an Expert Team for Assessment of Everyday Functioning decision or, where applicable, an MSEC certificate. The document must establish the disability group and cause relevant to the application.

Since Ukraine introduced the Expert Team assessment system, applicants may have an Expert Team extract instead of an older MSEC certificate. Current Diia and Ministry for Veterans Affairs instructions recognize both types where applicable.

What documents do current defenders usually need?

For military personnel, reservists, persons liable for military service, territorial-defence volunteers serving in covered structures and the other service categories specified in point 11 of part two of Article 7, the Ministry for Veterans Affairs lists two central pieces of evidence:

• the Expert Team assessment extract or applicable MSEC disability certificate; and
• documents confirming direct participation in the qualifying defence activities, including the certificate in the form prescribed by Annex 6 to Cabinet Resolution No. 413 where that form applies.

For a member of a territorial community volunteer formation, the current rules additionally identify the territorial-defence volunteer contract and the Annex 6 certificate issued through the prescribed command route.

Other Article 7 categories use different evidence. For example, employees of enterprises, institutions or organizations involved in supporting qualifying operations may rely on orders, assignment records, business-trip documents, duty records, special or official investigation materials and other records proving their direct involvement. Applicants should therefore use the document list for their own statutory category rather than copying the military document list.

How does the online Diia application work?

Diia currently provides an online application for the status. The portal states that the service is free, takes about 20 minutes to submit and has an official processing period of 30 calendar days.

1. Sign in to the citizen account using an electronic signature or BankID.
2. Enter the applicant's personal and passport information and registered residence information.
3. Complete the requested criminal-record information.
4. Select the category under which you are applying and provide information from the documents supporting that category.
5. Enter the information from your MSEC certificate or Expert Team assessment extract concerning the disability group and cause.
6. Indicate whether you want a paper veteran certificate.
7. Review the generated application and confirm it with the required qualified electronic signature.

The Ministry for Veterans Affairs confirms that the status can now be obtained online through Diia as well as offline.

What if Diia cannot find your data?

Do not treat a failed electronic lookup as a refusal of the status. Diia specifically states that if your information cannot be found in the Unified State Demographic Register, you should apply offline through a CNAP at your registered residence or, for an internally displaced person, at the address of your actual residence.

The law also provides an important safeguard for certain qualifying applications: when an applicant does not possess information or documents required to establish the status, the authorized status body must request the information through inter-agency interaction where the statutory rule applies. Article 7 requires that request to be sent no later than 5 calendar days after receipt of the application; the requested authority must provide the information or justify refusal no later than 15 calendar days after receiving the request. The status body then decides no later than 10 calendar days after receiving those materials.

Where can you apply offline?

You can apply through a Centre for Administrative Services, or CNAP. Current Ministry guidance also permits submission directly to the local structural unit responsible for veterans policy at the declared or registered place of residence or stay, or at the actual residence of an internally displaced person.

A paper application to the local veterans-policy unit may be submitted personally, through a legal representative or authorized person, or by post. A CNAP can accept a paper application personally or through a representative. For applicants covered by the electronic procedure, a CNAP administrator may also form the electronic application through Diia as provided by the current rules.

If you are displaced within Ukraine and have not yet formalized your IDP status, Helpydo separately explains how to apply for IDP status.

How and when is the decision made?

The current national service period is 30 calendar days. The local structural unit for veterans policy examines whether the applicant belongs to a statutory category, whether the required disability cause is established and whether the supporting evidence proves the qualifying circumstances.

For an electronic application, the result is a notification of the decision granting or refusing the status. Diia states that the result is sent to the applicant's email and relevant portal section. After approval, the applicant can generate a digital veteran certificate in the Diia app.

For a paper application, the result can include the physical certificate confirming status or a refusal decision, according to the applicable procedure.

What certificate do you receive after approval?

The status gives access to the rights and guarantees established for people with disabilities as a result of war under Ukraine's veteran legislation. The certificate is the document confirming the status.

If the disability group was established without a review period, the veteran certificate is issued without an expiry date. Otherwise, the certificate is issued for the period for which the disability group was established. When an Expert Team later extends the period or changes the disability group, the paper certificate can be updated in accordance with the veteran-certificate rules.

If you selected only the digital result when applying through Diia, you can still request a paper certificate afterward from the authority that made the decision granting the status.

If you already hold a combatant certificate and receive a paper certificate as a person with a disability as a result of war, Diia states that you can have only one valid veteran certificate; the existing combatant certificate is surrendered through the prescribed process when the new paper certificate is issued.

What can cause a refusal?

The Ministry for Veterans Affairs lists the principal grounds for refusal as:

• absence of necessary documents;
• submission of false information;
• discovery of forged documents;
• the applicable final criminal conviction described by the veteran-status rules; or
• the cause of the disability does not satisfy the requirements of the Law.

A refusal can be challenged before the competent administrative court.

Do not confuse this status with a family-member status

This procedure establishes the applicant's own status as a person with a disability as a result of war. It is different from the status available to certain relatives of a fallen Defender.

If your application concerns a qualifying relative who died rather than your own war-related disability, use the separate Helpydo procedure on applying for family member of a fallen Defender status.

What should you check before applying?

• Confirm the exact Article 7 category that applies to you.
• Check that your Expert Team decision or applicable MSEC certificate records the relevant disability group and cause.
• Prepare the participation, service, volunteer, employment or other evidence required specifically for your category.
• Use the current Diia route if your category and registry data support online submission.
• If Diia cannot find your Unified State Demographic Register information, use the offline CNAP route instead.
• If you want a paper certificate through a paper application, prepare the required colour matte 3 × 4 cm photograph.
• Do not assume that a general disability determination automatically establishes war-related veteran status; the statutory causal connection must be supported.